In the midst of demonstrations and boycotts, Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened India's new parliament building.
The majority of opposition parties declined to take part, stating that they preferred the president to Mr Modi as the building's official opening.
New Parliament complex, part of a more than $2 billion project
A sleek new Parliament complex was officially opened by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday as part of a more than $2 billion effort to renovate India's deteriorating colonial-era administrative centre in New Delhi.
However, the political opposition to Mr. Modi boycotted the inauguration event, which was marked by his customary fondness for Hindu religious and nationalist iconography. Additionally, the police were violently dispersing a protest outside in the streets.
Some of India's best wrestlers were imprisoned during the ceremony as they attempted to protest by going to the new parliament.
New building has replaced the British-era parliament
Parliament from the British era has been superseded with the new structure.
At 7:00 (02:00 GMT) on Sunday, pre-inauguration rituals got under way.
Following the dedication of the structure to the country, Mr. Modi spoke to a group of MPs.
This is not only a structure. It reflects the hopes and aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians. This is the temple of our democracy, and it communicates India's resolve to the rest of the world, he remarked.
Rahul Gandhi tweeted
The head of the main opposition Congress party, Rahul Gandhi, said in a tweet that Prime Minister Modi was treating the opening of the legislature like a coronation.
However, the opposition parties claimed that Mr. Modi's decision to preside over the ceremony was consistent with a larger violation of parliamentary procedure by his party, including passing contentious legislation that altered the principles of India's union with little to no discussion.
The opposition leader Rahul Gandhi called the inauguration a "coronation" since female wrestlers who have been protesting in central Delhi for more than a month had pledged to hold a march that day. Tight security was in place for the ceremony.
Olympic medalists are among the protesters who have accused Mr. Modi's party lawmaker and president of the wrestling federation of sexual harassment. Additionally, they have asserted that the government is making an effort to ignore their complaints.
When the wrestlers' march broke beyond the security barricades, the police stopped it. In a chaotic and violent scene, they arrested the wrestlers and tore down their tent.
The adoption of the Constitution that established India as a democratic republic and the 1947 proclamation of the country's independence from Britain both took place in the ancient Parliament building. However, it was no longer enough for what would soon overtake China as the world's most populated nation.
There wasn't enough room for the 543 lawmakers in the lower house, a figure that will probably rise in the years to come. A few years ago, the air conditioning smelled so awful that a meeting had to be called to order. Additionally, pieces of its ceiling would occasionally fall on participants.
The lower house's main chamber can now accommodate
888 people thanks to the new building, which was constructed for roughly
$120 million and created by Indian architect Bimal Patel.
The time and symbolism also contributed, according to Ronojoy Sen, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore and the author of a book about the history of India's Parliament.
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